


A Fractured Path: Episode I The Chosen One.

by MultiFandomDanii



Series: Fractured pathways [1]
Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game), Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Genre: F/F, F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-14
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2018-11-13 22:39:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11194917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MultiFandomDanii/pseuds/MultiFandomDanii
Summary: This is a colossal undertaking, that I am doing whilst my son is asleep, and I am an insomniac of terrible proportions.I essentially want to re-write the story of star wars, but mixed with life is strange, as they're my two favourite fandoms, and I haven't seen any fic like it yet, so I thought "Meh, why the hell not".It will start off from episode one, and hopefully, go straight through the whole series. I will attempt to stay true to as much of the lore from the respective stories as I can, however, there will be major changes, as is expected when mixing two completely different universes together. One such example is the existence of Earth and Arcadia Bay in the Sol system, as well as the technology.I will start with the prologue tonight, and carry on from there.This is my first attempt at a long fic, so please bare with me; I hope it is enjoyable.





	1. The Chosen One.

**Author's Note:**

> This is a colossal undertaking, that I am doing whilst my son is asleep, and I am an insomniac of terrible proportions.  
> I essentially want to re-write the story of star wars, but mixed with life is strange, as they're my two favourite fandoms, and I haven't seen any fic like it yet, so I thought "Meh, why the hell not".  
> It will start off from episode one, and hopefully, go straight through the whole series. I will attempt to stay true to as much of the lore from the respective stories as I can, however, there will be major changes, as is expected when mixing two completely different universes together. One such example is the existence of Earth and Arcadia Bay in the Sol system, as well as the technology.
> 
> I will start with the prologue tonight, and carry on from there.  
> This is my first attempt at a long fic, so please bare with me; I hope it is enjoyable.

Fractured Pathways: Episode I

The Chosen One.

 

Prologue

Two figures stood on the balcony on the highest tower of the building, with clad black cloaks flowing to their side, gazing out onto the mass of flesh and metal that was Coruscant. The skycars below raced at blurred speeds to their destinations, their occupants going about their day as if any other, blissfully unaware of the evil taking place above.

The shortest spoke first: “Master, all is going well, the Grand Plan will soon be put into full motion.” A sense of pride took hold of him, this had been long in the making, ever since the rule of two was enforced. “The trade federation is at our whim, with battle droids ready at our order. The Viceroy proved easy to manipulate.”

The taller figure said nothing, but this was to be expected; it was all his doing, setting all the pieces in place and having the apprentice send them out. The man spoke again “I trust all is going well with the Kaminoans’?”

Turning his gaze from the bustling skyline, the hooded figure spoke “The Kaminoans have agreed to carry out our wishes; the Jedi fool, Sifo-Dyas was easily convinced, the plan will go ahead, with full funding, and complete ignorance from the Jedi, once he is eliminated. I have also seen to it that any records of the planet be deleted from the local archives, including the Jedi’s.”

“Should I summon Dar-” he started, but was cut off immediately.

“No, his demise must leave nothing that may compromise the plan. I have already seen to this. I have other uses for your apprentice; he will play his part in due course.” The Master often pondered whether it was wise to allow another to join, but quelled the thought, rationalising that it would be better with him being busy with his experiments; it would allow him to further his reach across the galaxy. “We have done well, my Apprentice.”

The Apprentice tuned “Of course, Master. Now, I must see to it that the election is properly staged.” He started to head towards the door, before his Master called once more.

“I have felt something: a ripple through the Force.” The Master shifted, revealing a mask upon a scarred face “I can only postulate that our invasion of the force, all those years ago had an effect.”

“The chosen one?” The apprentice asked. This was troubling news. On one hand: The chosen one was supposedly destined to destroy everything he stood for; on the other: Why had he not felt this change in the force? “Master, what must be done?” Surely, this warranted immediate action?

“Nothing” said the Master, as he too, strode towards the doors. “In due time, _she_ will come to us.”

“Master?” questioned the apprentice.

Stopping at the door, the Master turned “Train your eye on Earth, Lord Sidious. This may yet work to our advantage.” He passed through the doors, pondering the future.

Darth Sidious remained for a while, mulling over the past conversation with his Master, visions swirling in the back of his mind. He too pressed through the doors into the building. This news had changed things, the time to usurp his Masters position as the true Dark Lord of the Sith drew ever closer. Darth Plagueis’ usefulness had run its course. All that was needed was to choose the right moment, then he would be the master, and be one step closer to complete control of the galaxy.

The immediate path was simple, everything was already in place. Once the trade federation played out their part, he would usurp command of the senate, being the only natural choice. There would be no faith in the current Supreme Chancellor. Manipulation was one of Darth Sidious’s greatest weapons, and one he used extremely well.

Once in his own office, any façade of the politician he played so well was dropped, and the true form of Darth Sidious entered the holo-com room.

“Viceroy” came his cold, emotionless voice. A low hum sounded and the console came to life, bringing into focus the blue holo-projection of Viceroy Gunray.

“My lord, so god to see you. What is your desire?” said a pathetic voice, full of obedience. Sycophants, Sidious could not stand them. They were only a means to an end.

“Begin the invasion” was all that he said. Before closing the holo-projector, and retiring to his quarters. Resuming the guise of the politician, and focusing his attention on the political opponents, instead.

Focus did not come easily to Lord Sidious tonight, however. His thoughts returned once more to the vision at the back of his mind, a name stood out; a place.

Arcadia Bay.


	2. Arcadia Bay.

Chapter I: Arcadia Bay

16 years later.

Running up the street, clutching the jacket hood over her face in an attempt to fend off the relentless rain, the young girl passed by the other people on the path, occasionally bumping into one or two in her haste to get to the transit station. Ordinarily, she would take her time, but to avoid getting wet, she elected to rush instead. Turning the corner and racing up the last hill to the station, she eventually stopped under the shelter of the stations' outer area. Lowering her arm, she reached into her rucksack and retrieved her phone. Checking the time, and realizing that she was, by a significant amount of time, early. She headed into the busy station and towards the nearest bathroom, being careful not to bump into anyone this time. Once inside, she made her way over to the sink and gazed into the mirror, she observed the dark circles around her eyes. “I really need to work on getting more sleep.” She stated, sleep had not been coming easy, as of late; there was this weird feeling like something was coming, or about to happen.

Lowering the hood, she shifted her gaze to her general appearance: Dark blue eyes stared back at her, her hair rested messily on the tops of her shoulders, her mouth in an almost perfectly straight line. “Resting bitch face”, apparently, according to her best friend. She grunted, “like she could talk.” The door opened and snapped her back to her senses. She waited for the person to pass, before leaving the bathroom.

The station had become less busy, the people who littered the halls were now off to their varying destinations; some locally, and some who would be going far out of the town. She wondered about them: Where were they going? What would they see? From an early age, she had an intense desire for adventure, and wanted to explore every part of the known and unknown universe; she wanted to document all of it, to be able to say she had seen it all. She might even be able to help people along the way.

She had listened to stories her Mother and Father had told her about the Jedi, how they would traverse the galaxy, working as guardians of the peace. She used to dream of becoming one and taking to the stars. She dreamt of all the good she could do; she would fight against all that was unjust, and right all that was wrong. Those dreams were long forgotten now, though. She had aged, and she knew that the Jedi would not take her now, then again, she doubted she even had what it took to be one.

She had seen a Jedi once, it was a moment she will never forget. Not because it was glorious or inspiring, nor was it epic or anything like the stories her Mother had told her. No, what made this so unforgettable was how normal it was. The Jedi had simply sat down in the café she was in with her Father, ordered a cup of coffee and read the news. She had expected her to regale her with stories of distant planets, and battles she had fought, but no, she simply sat there and acted like anyone else in the town would have done. The disappointment stuck with her for a long time, but she could never tell if the Jedi was truly that mundane, or whether the stories had been exaggerated.

Shaking herself out of her train of thought, she reminded herself that there was no point in thinking about that now, she needed to focus on the now. Looking around, she saw that the row of seats at the front of the station, facing the large glass window was free. She slowly approached and sat down and checked her phone again. “Crap,” she thought to herself “Still half an hour to go.” Checking for any messages, and seeing none, she placed her phone into her trouser pocket, and began gazing down the hill, where a good portion of the town could be seen. Sitting back into the chair, she sighed and thought about the place she lived in.

Arcadia Bay was not like most towns around. No towering buildings, no technological wonders or colossal monuments. Most of the money either went into the big cities like Washington or New York, or off world somewhere, not to small towns like this. The only real sign that the place was somewhat modern, were the skycars, albeit old, and often very well used, the few transit stations, and the small spaceport next to the docks. Mostly it was used to export minerals and food. The mines had unearthed resources that proved useful in starship production and was mainly sent to Kuat Drive Yards, and the fishing industry seemed to be popular with aliens in distant star systems. Between the two industries, the town seemed to keep itself afloat.

The inhabitants were exclusively Human; rarely was an alien seen, only occasionally making a run at the spaceport. The opinion on aliens were split within the community, there were those who were open to other species, and would welcome the diversity, and those who opposed it, clinging to the old ways, either out of pride, or irrational xenophobia. Most of the aliens that came to this world went to the larger areas and cities across the planet.

The layout of the town had not changed much from the old drawings and schematics, the main road still stretches the length of the town, until it reaches the college, with multiple roads splitting off to make up the various avenues that make up the bulk of the town. The lighthouse still stands sentinel over the bay, located just two miles out of the town, the Mayor thought the lighthouse a historical monument of days gone by, and issued a decree stating that it was not to be knocked down, but reinforced and upgraded, giving it the ability to aid in approaching starships as well as sea-faring vessels. How a lighthouse aided a starship, that has complex landing and docking procedures already in place, was beyond her, but she liked it nonetheless.

Further out of the main town is the industrial sector, wherein lies the mines, lumber mills, power plant, assembly lines, and the other industries that kept everything in the town flowing. This had become her favourite part of town. Partly because the local industry had recently been through a large number of workers striking. They did not take kindly to more than half the work-force being replaced by utility droids.

She would never admit it to anyone else, but as much as she felt for the people who lost their jobs, she much preferred watching droids at work than other humans. She would climb up a tree on one of the hills behind the industrial sector and watch for hours, she loved watching the machines work. She would watch intently, as the droids would whizz, whir, roll and shuffle around, stripping old starships down to the very core, before reassembling them into something completely different. This had been the inspiration for her pet projects, the things she got up to outside of her normal life, where no one could bother her. She would occasionally sneak into the area and _borrow_ some of the spare parts that none of the droids would notice go missing.

“What the hell are you doing here so early?” came a loud voice from behind her, immediately bringing her out of her own thoughts.

She knew whose voice that was immediately, without even needing to turn around. She shuffled back in her seat and lent her head over the back, “Hey Chloe.”

Chloe walked around the row of seats, before falling rather ungracefully, into the seat opposite. “Seriously, though. Why are you here so early?” she asked. Her face was a feature seldom fathomed at a glance, but there was a hint of worry there, that was evident.

“You worry way too much, Chlo” She gave her friend a half-smile. “I just woke up too early and couldn’t get back to sleep, so instead of lazing around the house, I figured I’d come here early. I hadn’t planned on getting stuck in the pouring rain, mind you.”

Chloe would not believe this excuse, she knew this. But she wasn’t about to tell her about the nightmares she’d been having. Not when she herself, thought they were a load of nonsense.

“Maxine Caulfield, when will you ever learn that you can’t keep shit from me?” She pointed.

“And when will you learn that not everything has some sinister meaning, aching for Detective Chloe Price to unravel.” Max countered. “And it’s Max, Never maxi-“ She began, but was cut off. Chloe always knew how best to get a reaction out of her.

“Never Maxine, yes, yes, I know. But it always helps to get a point across.” She said, one eyebrow raised.

“That point being?” Max returned, raising her own.

“That you’ve got something hidden away in that brain of yours that either you’re afraid of admitting because you think it will sound stupid, or something that genuinely unsettles you.” The silence was her answer. “Bingo.”

“Dammit” she thought. “She must look like an open book to her” After pondering for a second, Max thought it best to tell her now.  “Alright, fine. Look, it’s nothing big and it’s probably a load of crap, I’ve just been having weird dreams and nightmares, along with this strange feeling I can’t quite figure out.”

“Knew it” said Chloe, pointing at Max’s chest “what nightmares you been having?”

“Honestly? It’s not something I can describe easily. It’s like” she started, thinking to herself what to say. She hadn’t even figured out any of it yet; no part of it made sense. “It’s like I’m in this weird place, way high up, no idea where” she added, noting the perplexed expression on Chloe’s face. “everything feels wrong, like the feeling you get in your gut when you know you’ve done something bad, really bad. But I don’t have any regrets about it. It’s stupid, really. But it all felt so real, like I was looking at my self through a pane of hazy glass.”

“Huh.” Was the response.

“Really? ‘Huh’ is all I get?” not that she had expected anything more, at least not right now.

“I haven’t smoked enough to go that deep, this early, dude.” Said Chloe, chuckling to herself.

There It was. “Maybe later, then?”

“Hell yeah, you’re not getting of that easily, Caulfield. We will get to the bottom of these nightmares, and feelings, was it? Yeah, we’ll crack them. Team Pricefield always does.” She said, winking.

A thought occurred to Max “Hey, why are you here, anyway? You don’t go to school, and you’ve nowhere else to be?”

“Ouch. Hurt.” Chloe stood up, stretching. “Well, since I got kicked out of Blackhell, nowhere else will take me, so I’ve taken to running around doing errands for my mum, if you can believe it. She says if I’m not doing anything useful with my life, I may as well make myself useful.”

This was true. Chloe had been expelled for her continuous disregard for school rules, despite her good grades, albeit, the drug use was thought to be what had made the principal finally kick her out. Joyce, her mother worked in one of the more successful cafes’ in town, and was no doubt making Chloe run around town doing the odd bit to help her out. That woman is a machine, Max thought. Joyce had always been like a rock, from debts, a seemingly dead-end job, and Chloe getting kicked out of school, she held up remarkably well.

There was also the whole thing with her first husband, Chloe’s father, who had died tragically in a car accident. Both Chloe and Max had been in the car that day. It was not a day that was talked about very often, or even thought about if it could be helped. There was no actual explanation for what had happened either, which made things all the worse.

“I needed to drop off some breakfast to the manager here, he helped Mum out a few days ago, when she didn’t have enough money for the fare, thought she’d pay back the favour.” She sighed, stretching again “I gotta’ get back to her now though, probably a shit load of other jobs that need doing.”

“well, don’t let me keep you, I’ll catch up with you later. I’m not in all day today, I’ll text you, when I’m out.”

“Aye-aye, matey” Chloe saluted as she moved towards the exit, catch you later, Max.”

Watching Chloe leave, Max got her phone back out, and started flicking through social media. “Ten minutes left. Eight, if the bus was early.” Plenty of time to flick through, see what the rest of her friends and classmates were up to:

Warren Graham, the science guy of her year. He was currently doing a science project involving an upgrade for an astromech droid the school had provided for his studies. He would explain the process to her, telling her what each component would do, how it would improve the peak optical processing capability and the such. She feigned ignorance. She could have finished that project for him already, but she preferred to keep that part of her life a secret. He obviously had a crush on her, one which she didn’t return. She liked him, but not the way he liked her, she just didn’t know how to say that without hurting his feelings, or his ego for that matter. Besides, he was a good friend, many a time they had shared stories and theories about politics and town gossip. She liked that.

Kate Marsh, the sweet, tea-loving, church-going girl. She didn’t have a bad word to say about anyone. Max thought that was more to do with the fact that she just wouldn’t say anything bad; she was just too much of a good person. Max liked that about her. Unfortunately, because of her beliefs, and general good attitude towards life and others, she found herself the target of most of the school’s bullies. It was wrong, but there wasn’t much that could be done about it. Despite Max’s desire to help people, she never could really do anything to help. Kate was always seen with a brave face though, so she just assumed that she had her own way of dealing with things. Kate was really good at art, something she could easily get a job in. She liked drawing fantasy scenes, far away planets with never ending green fields, or vast temples, which Max always imagined filled with Jedi. She enjoyed sitting with Kate during breaks, they would share Kate’s tea, and talk about anything at all.

Daniel DaCosta, the quiet one. Max didn’t know much about him, never really thought to ask more about him. He seemed pretty decent though.

Brooke Scott, the robotics ‘expert’. Max did not like her, she would spend all her time around Warren, telling him how to better advance in his project. More often than not, max would notice that her advice was more of a hindrance than a help; she wasn’t sure if Warren notices this, however.

Alyssa Anderson, the ‘goth’ person in the year. Max like Alyssa, she wasn’t blinded by prejudice like so many others, she would see and take people as she found them and would tell them if she didn’t like something. She walks around the school and town in her spare time, Max always wonders what she’s thinking about when she does this.

Dana Ward, the cheerleader. Max liked Dana, what you see is what you get, doesn’t take any nonsense, and seem to be willing to help anyone with anything. A good person in Max’s eyes.

Victoria Chase. Queen douche. Rich, vain, arrogant, narcissistic, and a huge bully. Max hated her and all her ‘followers’ they couldn’t honestly be called friends. She likes to think that she rules the socialite side of Blackwell with an iron fist, which to be fair, she did. She seemed to know everything that went on, before it happened, and never missed a chance to bully or humiliate someone. Kate in particular. Her family owned a big holo art exhibit in Seattle, leading her to feel very entitled, something she did not hold back in publicly showing. Her and Chloe would butt heads quite often, her status didn’t mean a thing to her.

Nathan Prescott. King douche. Every bit an asshole Victoria is and more. His family own a property development firm, and the mines which kept the town afloat. She wouldn’t dare say it to his face, but he was a little asshole with a god-complex. He used every modicum of power he could to bully, hurt and get his own way. Annoyingly, he was actually a pretty smart person, particularly when it came to numbers not that he seemed to use this ability to much benefit.

Chloe Price. Rebel without a cause. She had known her for her entire life, their parents were neighbours when they were children, and they only ever got closer. They were seldom seen without each other during their younger childhood. This had changed recently, with their varying interests, and wit her getting kicked out of school. Chloe was very good at fixing vehicles, a skill that she no doubt got from her father before he died. She had taken a wrecked early model skycar from the local scrapyard and fixed into a working vehicle. On the inside, anyway. On the outside it still looked like it belonged in the scrapyard, not that she’d ever tell her that, it would hurt her pride too much, she loved that car.

“10 AM sky-bus for Blackwell, arriving now at terminal two-A.” came the synthetic voice of the station AI.

Getting to her feet, Max pocketed her phone and headed for the bus. She couldn’t help but notice that the bus was unusually empty. Nevertheless, she waited in the short queue that was there, got in, and sat in the nearest window seat she could find. Plugging her headphones into her phone, she slipped them on and closed her eyes. Music usually helped fill the boring journey.

_Dark._

_Light._

_Fire._

_Cold._

_Heat._

_Betrayal._

_Knowledge._

_Friendship._

_Mentor._

_Student._

_Learning._

_Loneliness._

_Love._

_War._

_Weapons._

_Machines._

_A planet of green._

_A planet of fire._

_A planet of skyscrapers._

_A dark figure._

_A dark room._

_A table._

_Fear._

_Anger._

_Hate._

_Suffering._

_Family._

_Redemption._

Max shot up, a million thoughts running through her head. She had seen so many things, but couldn’t focus on any of them, as if they were pictures, just out of focus. Sweating, she looked around, the gates of the academy were just coming into view.

Sitting back, she couldn’t help but feel worried. This was happening much more frequently now, and nothing seemed to ease them.

“Now arriving at-at Blackwell academy. Please leave-leave the vehicle in an-an orderly and civilised manner-manner. Thank-thank you.” Came the broken voice of the driver, a dark coloured droid, that Max thought needed upgrading. Its vocal processor sounded like it was on its last legs.

Max hurried to gather herself and head out towards the tall building ahead of her.

“Right, photography class first, then science, and then English.” She pushed the nightmare-vision to the back of her mind, she had other things to focus on for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note: I'm Welsh, so certain words or phrases may not work as they did in the game. Certain spellings such as 'Mom' seems foreign for me to type.


	3. Nightmares, or something else?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max finds herself in a strange and mysterious place, a place that may very well change her forever.

The hallway of Blackwell academy was bustling with activity. People swarming from location to another, pushing and shoving their way through others. ‘Barbaric’, she thought to herself.

Photography was just down the corridor, on the left. Max took her headphones off, as she neared the door, but paused at the sudden realisation of what she was hearing:

“Did you see the video?”  
“I did, I can’t believe her. Not so high and holy now, eh?”

“Can’t really see her coming back from this. Hey, did you see on the news about that planet in the far systems? Apparently, the separatists have completely occupied It now”.

Max got a very bad feeling about this. Deciding that she’d find out, anyway, she pressed on inside the classroom. Gossip spreads like wildfire here.

“Good morning, Max” said a cool voice as she entered.

“Oh, hey, Mr. Jefferson.” Max said as she looked at her teacher. A well dressed, handsome man. He had been very famous a few years back in the photography scene, somewhat less so now, but he was still held in high esteem by many and had more than a few contacts that would prove invaluable to any young photographer.

“Done this week’s homework?” he said with what Max thought was a very knowing smile.

“M-most of it, sir.” She lied. “Just need to finish the conclusion and it’s all set to hand in.”

He looked at her, almost as if examining her, “Well, I suppose that will have to do. I’d love to have it in by tomorrow though, Max. My patience does have some limits, you know.” He waved her to sit down.

Making her way to her seat at the back of the class, she noticed the arrangement of the other people there: Kate was in the corner of the room, her head deep in a book, unusual, Max noted, she was usually seated more towards the front of the room. Victoria and her followers took up most of the right side of the room, their faces transfixed on Victoria’s phone. This was bad, whatever it was. Very bad.

“Move along, hipster.” Sneered Victoria, as Max passed. Max ignored her.

Others were there too, Alyssa, Daniel and a few other who Max didn’t know by name. They all seemed to be deep in their own business.

Sitting down, she got her things out of her bag, mentally ticking them off one by one.

‘Notebook, check. Pencil case, check. Camera, Check.’ Her hand then found something else. A small ball of paper screwed up at the bottom of her bag. Opening it, she read in her own handwriting, albeit messy and what seemed to have been written in a rush: ‘Jefferson’s first question – the Daguerreian Process.’

“What the hell?” she whispered to herself. She had no memory of writing this, but she had the weird feeling that it was important, in some way.

She suddenly felt strange. Tired, unfocused, confused.

“Today, class, we’re going to talk about self-portraits. The great-grandfather of what is now known as selfies.” Cam Jefferson’s voice, but distant, again, like it was from behind glass; foggy, only partially there. Then there was nothing.

It was dark, there was no sound at all, nor was there much of anything else. It what she imaged the inside of a black hole was like.

She felt strangely normal; she could walk around and feel herself move, as if it was all real. The longer she was there, the more she could feel. She could feel herself breathing, the hairs on her arm stand on end.

Then something even stranger happened. There were sounds, distant sounds, coming from what seemed like everywhere.

“Hello?” she called. There was no response, not that had been expecting one. “Okay, great. You’re talking to yourself now, Max. First sign of madness, as they say.” She could not see anything, but she had the weird feeling that someone or something could see her.

She moved forward, without knowing where, but felt a solid surface beneath her feet, hoping that she’d come across something that would tell her what the hell was going on.

The sounds began to become louder and clearer. Whispers, millions, maybe billions of whispering voices. She quickly felt overwhelmed.

“Hello!? Who’s there? What do you want from me!?” she shouted into the nothingness. “Where am I?”

As if responding to her, the ground came into focus, a small grey path leading to her left. “Well, that’s an improvement, at least.” The feeling that she was not alone was increasing.

She turned and headed onwards down the path. “You know, for a seemingly empty place, there are plenty of bends and turns in this path.” She muttered to herself.

The whispering suddenly died down, so that a few of them were clearly audible over the countless others.

_“There exists such a place, where everything that has ever happened and ever will happen, in all the known and unknown universe can be tapped into.”_

_“Only a few of us have ever managed to even tap into this place, even after countless years of meditation. It is an extremely rare, and sometime dangerous skill.”_

_“to look into the future and past, a dangerous feat, this can be.”_

_“It is where everything begins and where everything ends.”_

_“Everything that was, everything that is, everything that will be, and everything that may be. It’s all there.”_

“Is that where I am? In the centre of all that has and will be? This is crazy!” she shouted in response. Flailing her arms in exasperation. How could any of this be real? It wasn’t. This was just another nightmare, right?

The voices die out again in the ocean of whispering, louder now. Different, this time. It felt like they were talking about her directly now.

_“You think she’s ready?”_

_“Do you honestly think you can trust her?”_

_“They are afraid of your power.”_

“Stop! Enough, I want out!” she screamed, her voice shaking. She felt as if she was being attacked, not just by the voices, she had this sick feeling within herself, like something was changing inside of her.

Max started to run down the path as fast as she could, but the voices kept following her, getting louder as she went.

Something was very wrong, she could feel pain, her insides were in agony, this was far worse than an ordinary nightmare.

Suddenly her legs gave out from underneath her. She collapsed onto the ground, as the voices quietened around her.

Panting, she buried her head in her hands. “I’ve had enough…I want to go home, please.”

“Interesting choice of words, young one.” Said a deep, cool voice from the darkness. “You managed to enter this place and hear the voices, by yourself. No one has ever done that before; not entirely, anyway.”

“W-what? Who’s there? Show yourself!” She gazed around. Nothing.

“Very well, you have nothing to fear from me, young one.” Came the voice again.

The voices were silent now. In their place were footsteps, gradually getting nearer. A tall, cloaked figure, clad in light brown robes, stepped came into focus.

A tall, bearded man, with scars on either side of his face, he had long brown hair, and had the air of mystery about him.

“You can feel it, can’t you? The change inside.” He said, sweeping her up and down with his eyes.

“I feel pain, I’m in agony.” She managed between breaths. “What’s happening. This is just a nightmare.”

The look he gave her was not encouraging.

“This is not a dream, nor a nightmare, young one.” He stated.

“Then wha-where?” She was cut off by a raised hand.

“Calm yourself, young one. I shall explain all that you are ready to comprehend.” He was not patronising, nor intimidating. He spoke in way that made Max drop her guard. She felt no threat coming from this man. Her instincts were usually right, she felt no need to ignore them now.

“You heard what they said? About where you are?” he asked, simply.

“A-a place where everything has happened, and where everything is going to happen?”

“Yes, and no. This is not so much a physical place, by definition. You see, this is where all living energy originates from. Every cell, every event, every insignificant object in existence, contains the energy that originates here.”

He began pacing around her, the way teachers walk around a classroom, she couldn’t help but wonder just who this person was.

“Energy? What, like electrons, and the other particles?”

“Again, yes and no. The energy I am talking about resides in everything you see, and everything you do not. I am referring to what is called the force.”

Max’s eyes widen.

“Y-you mean the force that the Jedi use?”

“Partially. What you see around you is the cosmic force, which resides in everything and binds reality together, it is fuelled by the living force, which is inside everything in existence.”

He paused, looking at Max, before continuing to pace.

“Midi-chlorians, tiny, tiny life forms that exist within every cells of every living thing, are what make an individual able to use the force and perform extraordinary feats, should they have enough of them. The Jedi are such individuals.”

“So, this is place is where the force comes from?”

“Possibly. No one knows where the force actually comes from, but it is more potent here than anywhere else in the known universe.”

She felt herself buckle again, the pain was increasing. She found herself struggling top breathe.

“What’s happening to me?” she begged, trying to look up at the man.

“I have a theory.” He stated, gazing down at Max. “Whether it proves true or not, you will soon discover.”

“And that is?” she asked, trying to keep her voice steady.

“That your body is adjusting to the changes that the energy here is causing; the midi-chlorians within you are awakening, the ones that weren’t already.”

“B-but, I have no power! I’m just a kid from Oregon! Right?” she understood none of this and was starting feel very ill.

He knelt down before her, his face level with hers.

“I do not believe it is coincidence that you find yourself here, young one. The force acts in strange ways, that few understand.” He placed his right hand on her shoulder. “No one has ever before managed to enter this place with their full body. Many have tried for countless years to glimpse into this place, and here you are, able to walk around with all your physical and mental being.”

He stared at her, and she felt the intensity of his brown eyes bore into her. How did he know all this?

“Focus, young one. Calm yourself and close your eyes.”

She obeyed. She did not know why, but she trusted him. She closed her eyes.

“Clear your mind, block any thoughts.”

“What am I supposed to be doing?” she said through gritted teeth.

“Just focus. You will see.”  
He was right. Moments later, she could feel the pain lessen slightly. She felt something else too. Change, she could feel a strange sensation, taking over her body. As the feeling spread, a few, clear voices could be heard.

_“The first step is the most vital, to understand the energy inside is the key to properly utilising it”_

_“Focus. A clear mind, you must have.”_

_“You must be aware of the living force, as it surrounds everything you see. Everything is connected.”_

She felt connected, more complete than she ever had before.

As the feeling spread the pain lessened. Then there was nothing, no pain or strange sensations. Just as suddenly as it had started, it stopped.

Shakely getting to her feet, the man stood, and started walking down the path again.

“Hey!” she shouted after him. “What was that? What just happened?”

“It is impossible to say, for certain. I trust you will find out soon enough, however. Come, there is one more thing I wish to show you.”

They walked down the path for what seemed like hours, strange things had started to appear, either side. Blurry visons, some she vaguely recognised: A birthday party, or a day out with her family; some she had never seen before, herself walking down a long corridor with a talk, dark haired man.

She couldn’t help but wonder about what was happening back in the classroom, was she still asleep there? She would be in serious trouble. Especially as she was already behind with her homework.

“Time does not exist here, young one. I very much believe that you will return to your previous location, exactly how you were.”

Max glanced at him in awe.

“How did you know what I was-”

“You wear your feeling on your face, you may need to work on that.”

“What? Why would that be?” she questioned. Surely, she’d have no need to try and hide anything from anyone.

“It is very unlikely that what has happened here now, will not have sent ripples through the force. As I said, no one before you has ever been here, how you came to be here, I still do not know. But I suspect that its impact will be felt from the very furthest reaches of the force’s influence. You must prepare yourself for this, young one. Whatever happens from this point on, your actions will have consequences.”

He paused in the centre of the path, as if waiting for something.

“You were always destined to be here, young one. I do not doubt that.”

He started talking quieter, as if to himself.

“Could it be? Right now, on the precipice of galactic conflict. It has been millennia. Is she really the one?” He looked confused, he was clearing deep in thought about something.

“What happens now? What do I do?” She asked, placing her hand son her head. “You’re telling me that anything I do will have consequences.  What am I supposed to do with that? What am I supposed to do now?”

“When you get back? Nothing. I dare say someone will find you sooner, rather than later. As for now, it is time for you to wake up. I would advise caution. I have no idea what will happen, now that your force sensitivity has awoken.”

Max could feel herself getting drowsy, like she was being pulled away into nothing.

“Who-who are you?” she asked, as she began to succumb to the darkness.

“I have many names. I have been many things. Do not fret, we will meet again.” He knelt down in front of her again and looked her in the eyes. “You may call me Revan.”

And then there was nothing.


	4. Newfound Power

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Max finds herself troubled, as things begin unraveling themselves around her.

Chapter III: Newfound power.

Shooting up from the desk, Max looked around frantically. She was back in the classroom, Jefferson was lecturing about self-portraits and she had just woken up from an extremely weird and vivid dream, or so she hoped. “That couldn’t have been real, right?” she thought to herself. “Just another damn nightmare.” There was doubt though; she felt much different than she did five minutes ago, from looking at the clock.

Panting quietly and trying to control her breathing, she tried to pay attention to the class. This proved much harder than she though however, with everyone talking so loudly. “How was Jefferson so chilled out right now? After he had flipped out on Alyssa earlier that week for whispering to Kate during another one of his lectures.”

But their mouths were hardly moving. The more she thought about this, the more she began to notice other things: The sound of Kate’s pencil scrapping onto the paper; Alyssa tapping her phone under the table at the front; the clock ticking each second away.

This was not normal and was making her very anxious.

“Was this because of that nightmare?” she thought.

She heard more scribbling. Looking over at Victoria, she saw her write onto a small piece of paper, scrunch it into a ball, and then proceed to throw it at Kate, hitting her in the face.

There was something building up inside her: anger. Not like any anger she had felt before, it felt primal.

Kate picked up the paper and folded it out. From where she was sitting she could make out the writing, in curved handwriting.

‘Dear Kate, we love your porn video. XOXO Blackwell academy.’

Max felt nothing short of furious at Victoria.

“How could she even think of writing something like that, the bitch!” she thought.

Just the thought of it was making her shake with anger.

*SMASH*

The windows of the room shattered, sending glass flying in every direction. Kate and Alyssa had to dive away from the window to protect themselves. Max herself jumped out of her seat in shock.

“What the hell?!” Shouted Jefferson, dodging shards of glass “Everyone get clear of the windows and stay calm, we don’t know what caused this.”

“well, maybe your god wasn’t too keen on the video then, eh Kate? Maybe this is some divine wrath” came the shrewd voice of Victoria. Followed by laughter from her followers.

“That’s enough, Victoria!” scolded Jefferson.

“Just pointing out the obvious, sir.” She replied, smirking. She looked at Kate, mimicking a prayer “not in his good books, are we? Sad face.”

Clenching her fists, Max stared furiously at Victoria, oh the thing she'd do to her. All she could think about was how she would like nothing more than to see the bully get some of here own medicine. She was so vile! So cold and cruel, and she deserved nothing more than-

She was cut of by a sharp, deafening scream. Victoria. She had collapsed onto the floor and was screaming in what looked like agony.

“Everyone move, now!” Shouted Jefferson, clearing his way to the now sobbing Victoria.

Kneeling by her side, he examined her, but evidently decided that whatever was wrong with her was far beyond his ability to aid.

“Can you stand?” he asked, trying to convey a soothing voice.

“N-No, my back. It hurts so much.” She whimpered, moving convulsively on the floor.

“Not nearly enough.” Thought Max, still shaking with rage. All she could think abo0ut was watching Victoria suffer herself, for once, and her it was happening.

Renewed, sharper screams filled the room, as Victoria convulsed again. Clearly in even deeper pain.

“Somebody call an ambulance!” shouted Jefferson.

When no one moved, he took his own phone out, and dialed the number.

“Hello, yes I need an ambulance at Blackwell Academy, one of my students has collapsed onto the floor” he paused “No, I don’t know the cause, she was fine one minute and, on the floor the next.” Another pause, “Thank you, we’ll be waiting.” He put the phone down and called for someone to run to the principal. “Let him know that an ambulance is on the way!” he shouted after them.

“Class dismissed, everybody out! Now!” he shouted.

No one argued. They all gathered their belongings and left the room as quickly as they could.

Max gave one last furious look at Victoria, before leaving the classroom. She had no sympathy for her. But why was she so angry? The fury she felt was like nothing she had ever experienced before, and it wasn’t going away.

Having nothing else to do, as the next class was another half hour away, and likely to be cancelled, anyway, she decided to sit outside for a while, try and calm down for a bit.

This proved to be a lot harder than expected, however. She could still feel her blood pulsing through her veins, she still felt so angry “Bitch got what she deserved” she thought to herself.

She also couldn’t shake that dream she had, or whatever it was.

A few minutes after she had sat down, sirens could be heard. An ambulance pulled up outside the school, and a group of paramedics raced inside soon after.

She closed her eyes and tried to calm down again. This time she was interrupted by her phone going off in her pocket.

Dad.

A second after answering, she was barraged with frantic questions from her father.

“Max! are you okay!? We heard sirens and saw an ambulance racing towards the school!” The note of fear and panic were evident.

“I’m fine Dad, you can stop worrying, nothing happened to me.” She reassured him

“Thank god.” He sighed. “Well, what happened then, do you know?”

“A girl in my class collapsed, something with her back, I think she said.

“Well, I hope she gets better, whatever is wrong with her.” He said calmly.

“Not so sure I share that opinion. It might teach her to be nicer to people.” She snapped, without thinking about what she said.

“Maxine Caulfield!” She winced, she knew she’d said the wrong thing. “That’s disgusting, even if se isn’t a nice person, you know damn well better than to say something like that!”

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. She just makes me so angry when she bullies everyone.”

“Damn right. Even so, you know better. I’m cooking tea tonight, make sure you’re here on time, for once.” His tone was getting angrier, she knew she’d screwed up.

“I will be, Dad, I’m sorry.” She pleaded, hoping the tone would soften.

“I’ll see you when you get in”. he stated, and the call dropped.

Nope, still pissed.

“Great” she thought to herself. There was a severe lecture in store for her tonight.

“I just wish I could get some damn peace here, man could everyone just quiet down?” she said to herself.

Looking up, there was no-one in here direct vicinity, but people huddled in bunches all over, chatting amongst themselves.

This was strange. They were a fair distance away, each of the groups, but she could hear nearly every word they said, as if they were stood in front of her.

“What do you think happened with Vic?”

“what about the windows smashing in? Think that had anything to do with it?”

“I don’t know, something weird happened in that room, I’m telling you.”

“Her back just going like that, man I’m telling you, that aint’ natural, she was fit and healthy as anything when I saw her earlier.”

She felt like her head was going to implode, she needed to get away from all this, and she knew just the place.

Picking up her bag, she walked as fast as she could without drawing notice to herself out through the school gate and down the street.

A left.

Straight up.

Another left.

A right.

Over the fence.

The building gradually faded out into green meadows, her destination was just over the hill ahead.

“Ah, peace and quiet”

A slightly rusted sign read “PRESCOTT DROIDWORKS” A somewhat smaller sign underneath then read “This is private property. Unless access has been given, intruders will be prosecuted and charged”

“Ha, haven’t caught me before; won’t catch me today.

The site was huge, bigger than any site in Arcadia Bay, and usually manned by a few guards and a ton of autonomous work droids.

There was a large metal wall around the entire perimeter, and security lights darted around the inside. Luckily, Max had the entire place mapped out now. She had been coming here for years, after all, this is where she ‘borrowed’ a few bits and pieces for her project.

She walked down the side of the wall, squeezing in-between bushes and trees as she went.

About half a mile down the wall, there was a half-broken tree, that was conveniently leaning towards the wall.

She climbed up gracefully, hopping from the tree to the top of the wall, and sat on its edge. She loved this place; just the droids whirring around, and the occasional guard who didn’t really seem to care enough about the place anyway.

She was starting to plan what she wanted today, when her head exploded with pain.

Catching her off-guard, she shifted in pain, slipping off the wall and crashing into the ground, landing awkwardly with a loud bang on the boxes that would have otherwise helped her scale down quietly.

A searing pain shot through her left arm, as she struggled with the already nauseating pain in her head, she kept seeing flashes of places and things she didn’t recognise, and some she did.

A yellow ship.

Arcadia spaceport.

Cloaked figures.

A silver ship.

Spherical droids flying through the air.

She was suddenly blinded by an intense source of light, looking up, still half-holding her aching head, she saw one of the droids that operated the factory. The red light beginning to flash on its side was an obvious indicator of what it was about to do.

“INTRUDER DETEC-“ The droid began alarming loudly.

Closing her eyes, she abandoned trying to soothe the pain in her head and threw her right arm out towards the droid.

She kept her eyes shut tight, she was genuinely scared of getting caught now, and knew she wasn’t in shape to get back over the wall. It was then she realized that there was the sound of grinding metal, crashing gears and leaking gas. The droid had stopped its alarm.

Slowly opening her eyes, she took in the scene before her. The droid that moments before had began sounding an alarm, now looked it had been partially put through a crusher.

Its metal chassis was bent inwards, there was gas leaking out of its exposed hydraulics, it’s face was nearly imploded, and its tracks and gears were flat out crushed.

She looked from the destroyed droid, to her still outstretched hand. Putting two and two together to come to the only, insane, impossible, completely illogical conclusion there was.

“I-I did this?” she stammered, not knowing what to think. She didn’t even notice that the headache and flashes had subsided.

She edged closer to the broken machine and touched it with her hand, as if to confirm it. There was nothing else even in the area, let alone something that could crush the steel alloy body plating.

She began to panic, fear and horror was beginning to grip her, if she did this, then earlier in the classroom-

The sounds of approaching droids brought her to her senses, looking around, she knew she wasn’t about to get back up over the wall with her hurt arm. She turned around, and rushed in the opposite direction, away from the sounds of the nearing droids.

Running through the site, she passed dozens and dozens of stacked containers, packed droids, and warehouses.

She eventually found a container that was slightly ajar. She slipped inside and pulled the door to, hoping that she wouldn’t be found before she could come up with a plan to get out of here.

She backed up against the container wall, panting. Slowly sliding down, she felt the earlier thoughts creep back into her head.

“Oh, god. If I did that to the droid, earlier, the classroom, Victoria. No, no way. I couldn’t have.”

She held her head in her unhurt arm, as she ran the day over and over again in her head, coming each time to the same conclusion. The dream, the windows, Victoria, the flashing images, the droid.

It was her, somehow, impossibly somehow, it was her.

 

Meanwhile, on Coruscant.

 

“Master Yoda, you look troubled. What is it?” Said a high-pitched voice.

“Gather the council, Master Mundi. Through the force, troubling things I have felt. Discuss them, we must.”

Watching the other Master rush off to summon the others, the aged Grand-Master made his way to the council chamber.

Once there, he waited; contemplating what he had felt through the force.

He had been meditating, as he often did. It gave clarity and a better understanding of the universe at work. It had been subtle at first, a small ripple in the force, something had been out of place.

There had been many disturbances, many small ripples over his many years, caused by events, wars and deaths. But this one was different, it was as if the ripple came from the centre of the force itself. The ripples gradually grew larger and larger. And then came a wave of energy like he had never seen before. Within this energy, he could sense things, things that had never been so powerfully conveyed through the force before now. Sadness, loneliness, anger. These feelings had never been felt so direct before, it was troubling him greatly.

He was brought out of his contemplation by the arrival of the other council members.

“You called us here, Master Yoda?” came a deep, clear voice.

“Yes, Master Windu. Be seated, discuss something important, we must.”

As the present council members sat down, the remaining empty seats lit up with the holograms of those away on their duties, answering the Grand-Masters’ call.

“A disturbance in the force, there has been. Felt it, have you?” he asked.

There were looks of discomfort in the faces of the other members, the ripple had obviously not been felt by any others, if at any.

“Yes, I felt it too.” Came the answer from an aged man, sat opposite Yoda. “It was nothing as I had ever felt before.” He looked at the other members. “It was like the force was straining, splitting away a piece of itself. I know my apprentice, Anakin has felt it too. He described it as feeling a surge of power through the force, like a conduit, but he does not know what for.”

“This is troubling, Qui-Gon.” Said a woman, leaning forward. “There seems to be different interpretations of this event.”

“Agree, I do, Master Ti. A consensus, we must make.”

The members all murmured and nodded in agreement.

“I suggest we take proper action, follow the book here: Treat it as a tensile, unknown situation and investigate it further.” Suggested a younger-looking man, seated next to Master Windu.

“Agree, I do, Master Fisto. However, something else, there is.”

He waited as the others looked confusedly at him.

“After the disturbance, there was another, smaller disturbance. But curious, even more, it was. Anger, frustration, and sadness. Many things all at once, they came.”

“Another event?” asked Windu.

“Not an event. I believe this disturbance to be caused by a person.”

“How can you be sure of that, Master Yoda?” asked Kit Fisto.

“Similar to others, it was. Such as when first discovered a force sensitive child is.”

“Similar? How so?” Asked Qui-Gon.

“Powerful, it was, very powerful. More so than ever before, I feel.” He sighed. The most troubling part of it all, this was.

The other councilors looked at him, worriedly.

“Find this person, we must. To be this powerful in the force and unchecked, a great risk, is.”

“How do you suggest we search for this person, Master Yoda?” asked Master Windu.

“A vision through the force, I have seen. A place called Arcadia Bay on the planet Earth, I see.”

This had come through in fragments, he had first sensed it in the system Sol, then the planet Earth, and then through various locations, until he could focus only on Arcadia Bay. He explained this to the other members.

“Arcadia Bay? The same place the Padawan girl Master Koon found, all those years back?” Asked Master Mundi.

“The very same, I believe,” Yoda replied.

Master Plo Koon had discovered a force sensitive girl on his return to Coruscant, he had found her in a docking station, living in squalor in an alleyway nearby. Sensing the force within her, he had brought her back here. It was rare, to find a Togruta in a human settlement, let alone a human planet. She had thrived, and proved herself a true Jedi, since her training began.

“Who should we send?” Asked Master Tiin, in a deep hollow voice.

“I think Master Qui-Gon, and his apprentice, Skywalker should go. I believe they would best fit in there. Earth is the birthplace of the human species, after all.” Suggested Master Mundi.

“I good plan, this is. The Jedi Kenobi, and his young Padawan should join them. I sense that there is danger here. I fear there are forces at play here, that we do not yet understand. They have proved themselves in their recent duties.”

“Consent to this plan, I do.” He said simply.

Yoda stood, and the rest of the council followed suit.

“Make haste we must. The ripple, unnoticed, not for long I fear it will be.” He nodded at Qui-Gon. “Speak to young Kenobi and Young Tano. Leave soon, you must.”

“Yes, Master Yoda. We will discover the true nature of the forces at work here. What should we do when we find this person? How would we begin to look?” asked the aged man.

“Clues, there will be. Such powerful influence with the force, traces, it leaves. Go and search, Qui-Gon, and you will find what you seek.” He bowed the Qui-Gon out, signaling that the assignment had begun.

One by one, the council members left, to resume their business, until there was only Master’s Yoda and Windu left.

“There is still something troubling you, Master Yoda.” Sated Mace Windu.

“Concerns, I have. The prophecy, do you recall?”

“About the Chosen One? You think that this is the person to whom it refers?”

“Pretend to know, I do not. The force, in mysterious ways, it works. A coincidence, this is not. The force unbalanced it is, clouded by the dark side. The will of the force, I believe this is. How it plays out, we shall find out, soon enough.” Said the aging Master, as he started to make his way back to the meditation chambers.

“Then we must have faith that they will succeed.”

“Indeed we must, Master Windu, Indeed we must.”

 

Elsewhere.

 

A cloaked figure entered out onto a balcony in an immense city skyline, walking up behind another, slightly shorter cloaked figure

“You summoned me, my Master?” a deep, rattling voice spoke.

“It has begun, my apprentice.” Said a terrible voice. “You must go to Arcadia Bay, on earth. You will not interfere unless otherwise instructed.” The figure ordered.

“Yes, Master, it will be done.”

The taller figure turned around and rushed back inside, leaving the other alone.

“So it begins, my young friend. Soon enough, we will meet, and together, we will finish the great plan.” He raised a datapad to meet his icy gaze. “Until we meet, Maxine Caulfield.”


End file.
